Midway [DVD]

One of the great WWII films, with a star cast. It was great to watch it again and to buy a copy for my collection.

Great film, with great actors.

This true story is well told, However I will have to watch it again to get a clear understanding of this battle in the Pacific. The complexity of the battle of Midway takes some following.It is thought necessary to add a love interest and unfortunately some of the stars over- act ( One naval commander is portrayed as a cigar smoking/chewing character who never takes the cigar from his mouth and has an accent straight from the Dukes of Hazzard. Very difficult to follow.All in all a fine depiction of one of the most critical battles of WW2

I realize that a lot of the review of this film were quite scathing, but I am still going to rate this with five stars. I find it a very enjoyable and informative film.Yes, this is not a big-budget war film of the type that "The Longest Day", "Battle of Britain", "Tora, Tora, Tora" and "Bridge Too Far" were. It is true the cannabilzed big battle scenes from "TTT" and, I believe "Battle of Britain", leading to ridiculous scenes like showing a Japanese torpedo bomber taking off to bomb the land targets on Midway Island and showing American fighter planes taking off the small, flat desert islands of Midway with the green mountains of Hawaii in the background. It is also true that the sub-plot with Capt Garth's son and his Japanese girlfriend was superfluous, although it does give the audience some idea of the paranoid anti-Japanese-American feeling that existed at the time.Having said this, I must point out the strengths of the film. First there was Henry Fonda's outstanding portrayal of Admiral Nimitz. His low-key acting approach was perfect for Nimitz's cool demeanour (it seems we also see some of Fonda's political correctness-whereas everyone else seems to call the enemy "the Japs", Fonda always calls them "the Japanese"). Next, the importance of Lt Commander Joseph Rochefort's code breakers in supplying vital intelligence on a very thin shoestring is emphasized. When Garth asks how much of the Japanese messages can be deciphered, Rochefort (played by Hal Holbrooke) replies "10 percent". Garth says "you're just guessing!" but Rochefort says "we prefer to call it 'analysis'".Most importantly we see the immense pressure on the commanders on the spot, particularly Admirals Spruance (played by Glenn Ford) and Fletcher (Robert Webber) who have to make life-or-death decisions with only partial information in a very short time frame.The film is not quite as strong on showing the Japanese side. Whereas "Tora, Tora, Tora" used Japanese actors and directors, showing the Japanese to be rather brusque and militaristic, the American-Japanese actors in "Midway" give a more relaxed, American-style performance which I think is less authentic, but James Shegita, who plays the carrier task-force commander Admiral Naguma shows well the indecision and indecisiveness that plagued him. The film does point out that there was opposition to the whole plan among senior Japanese commanders, involving hundreds of ships involved in a complex operation devised to conquer both Midway and the Aleutian Islands in addition to bringing the remaining American carriers into battle in what was supposed to be their final, decisive defeat, in addition to what Japanese historians called "the victory disease" in which the Japanese, now underestimating their American opponents after six months of victories following Pearl Harbor, became lax with ensuring the security about plans for their operation and ignoring possible dangerous situations such as not knowing where the American carriers were located before launching their attacks.The film ends emphasizing that there was a great deal of luck in the American victory. Since the film highlights these important facts, it is still very worthwhile to view, in spite of its flaws.

top dvd good price

Bought this for my father in law who loves old war films. He has watched this about 5 times in 2 weeks.

This is one of the few dvd's which is better than the modern version. Maybe it is because it was made shortly after the war ended so retains some of the historical fact. That it is made to entertain makes it better than the more modern version which seems to want to re-write history a little. Still it is a classic for any collector.

Pacific war drama. The film is full of terrifying battle scenes, some of which are originally shot from World War Two. There are fine performances from key actors. The film is steady in pace, but the battle scenes keep you interested. The plot follows the story of 'The Battle Of Midway' during World War Two.

Un film sulla battaglia delle Midway realizzato con molti mezzi ed anche con l'utilizzo di molti filmati originali della Seconda Guerra Mondiale, ben fatto, seppure in parte incompleto su coloro che furono i protagonisti della battaglia in campo Americano, nonché, con qualche immagine ripresa dal precedente Tora, Tora, Tora.In ogni caso un ottimo film di guerra, parlando pure di Magic, oggi restituito in DVD con video ed audio ottimi imperdibili per gli appassionati di storia.

j'ai commandé ce DVD pensant recevoir le documentaire de John Ford plutôt que de le renvoyer j'ai décidé de le visionner :si ce modeste avis lu en 30 secondes peut épargner à quelques personnes de perdre 2 h de leur temps alors celui qu'il m'aura fallu pour composer ce commentaire n'aura pas été vain!acteurs cachetonnant et images d'archives gonflées composent l'essentiel du "spectacle ",navrant ...

Fast shipping and great movie!

Ottimo film di guerra ,sempre attuale e senza tempo.Avevo il VHS ma col DVD è una altra visione, peccato che non si trovi il blu ray in italiano.Il film è molto spettacolare,senza spazi morti e, non trovando elementi negativi, lo consiglierei a tutti.Cordiali saluti

I've seen this Film many times..It's not getting worse.It is possible to fall asleep during it,but America always wins!! Do I get paid for this?